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Decisions are in
The remaining NBA Draft stay-go decisions have been made. Plus, two Big East schools pick up a key transfers, U.S. Senators are attempting to save college sports and more.
Samuel Lance
May 28, 2026
Good morning! We know who’s back in college hoops and who’s not. Guess it’s time to prepare those preseason rankings.
In partnership with D1.relocation
1. Stay or go? Plus a HUGE commitment
It wasn’t until after Wednesday’s NBA Draft withdrawal deadline passed that we got the biggest news.
A half hour or so past midnight, former Baylor wing Tounde Yessoufou decided to remove his name from the draft pool, and he also committed to St. John’s. It was rather sudden and unexpected news, but now Rick Pitino’s roster looks to be elite once again.
The Johnnies return Ian Jackson, Ruben Prey, Lefteris Liotopoulos and Casper Pohto. They’ve added Yessoufou, Donnie Freeman and Avery Brown from the portal, as well as Quinn Ellis, Dordije Jovanovic and Lazar Stojković from overseas. That’s a roster capable of competing for a Big East crown.
As for the other decisions made on Wednesday:
Staying in the draft: Ebuka Okorie and Koa Peat.
Returning to college, but in portal: Milan Momcilovic.
Returning to college programs: Amari Allen (Alabama), Billy Richmond (Arkansas), Andrej Stojakovic (Illinois), Jeremy Fears Jr. (Michigan State), Tounde Yessoufou (St. John’s), Tyler Tanner (Vanderbilt).
Really, there were no surprises here besides maybe Peat. He would have made a lot of money coming back to school, but the move to go to the league still makes sense.
Besdies Yessoufou and Peat, Tanner heading back to Vanderbilt is up there for the most impactful decision. He takes the Commodores from a borderline top-25-to-35 team to now likely top-15.
All eyes now turn to Momcilovic and where he’ll be transferring. Arizona, Kentucky, Louisville and St. John’s are seen as the frontrunners to land him, and his addition would be game-changing for all four.
Lastly, there was no official announcement from Arkansas freshman guard Meleek Thomas. However, his silence is likely to mean he’s staying in the NBA Draft, and that has been the expectation.
2. Georgetown lands a top transfer + more moves
While several college basketball rosters were bolstered with players withdrawing from the NBA Draft on Wednesday, Georgetown coach Ed Cooley used a different approach to improve his.
